
DATE: Sunday, July 27, 1997                 TAG: 9707250256

SECTION: CHESAPEAKE CLIPPER      PAGE: 06   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY SANDRA BARKER, CORRESPONDENT 

                                            LENGTH:  123 lines

HAFWAY TO HOMEARAMATHE FIRST SUCH EVENT IN WESTERN BRANCH IS MAKING FRANTIC PROGRESS TOWARD OCT. 4 DEBUT.

``BUILD IT and they will come'' may be a cliche, but when area builders get together to construct Homearama, people do come - by the tens of thousands.

The first Homearama to be held in the Western Branch area of Chesapeake has reached the halfway mark in its transformation from field and woodland into well-groomed lots and upscale houses.

For now, the transformation requires a vivid imagination. But by October, the piles of brick, cinder block and lumber, the views of plywood walls and tarpaper roofs and the scattering of portable johns will be nearly a dozen fine homes spread along a gently winding street.

Since early May, building crews have been in the race against time. Ringing hammers, whirring drills and whining saws have combined with loud portable radios, the thud of falling lumber and the din of dump trucks to provide a noisy symphony that could be titled, ``Men at Work.''

Goose Creek Estates off Jolliff Road in Western Branch, is the location of this beehive of activity. The 35-acre subdivision with 65 lots and a small creek, will showcase 11 custom built homes costing up to $275,000, built by members of the Tidewater Builders Association.

About 80,000 visitors are expected to attend the 16th annual Homearama, to be held Oct. 4-19. Buses will shuttle visitors from a parking area off Old Dock Landing Road. This is the ninth time Homearama has come to Chesapeake, the last time at River Walk in 1993.

Once the location of Homearama was settled, the names of participating builders were drawn from a lottery to determine in which order they could choose their building site.

Ken Cohen, who teamed up with Bob Widener for the project, was pleased with their corner lot. The Northwest Pacific style house they are presenting is unusual for this area. It will have dual master suites, upstairs and down.

John Foxwell, owner of JFK Contracting, enjoyed working on the custom designed Cohen-Widener house.

``If it was a tract house, I don't want to do it,'' said Foxwell as he shot nails into plywood at record speed to finish framing the house. ``But stuff like this where you have to use your brain, that's what I love.''

Decorators are also busy, mapping out plans for the new homes.

Nearest to completion, the creek-front house built by Viola Building Corp. will be decorated strictly with Goodwill Thrift Store items. Although the least expensive to decorate, the house may prove to be one of the most time-consuming. Barbara Morin, design coordinator, and Sandy Webster, designer, have been visiting thrift stores weekly.

``It's amazing the things we find - antique dressers and one-of-a-kind china,'' Morin said. ``It's been fun!''

Stores at nearby Chesapeake Square Mall will provide all the interior pieces for 21st Century Builder's Virginian-Pilot house. Ed Camp and D.J. Walters, partners in 21st Century, called their first Homearama venture ``a lot of work, but a great opportunity.''

During the messy construction phase, one builder has provided a thoughtful touch. Broyles Construction offers a walkway of green, indoor-outdoor carpet across the mud, from the curb to a box of brochures telling about the company's Windows '97 house.

Builders are thankful for the weather's cooperation, for the most part, this year. ``Rain at night, sun in the day,'' said builder Jack Jackson III, whose corner house offers three walk-in closets in the master suite.

Builder Larry R. Hill, whose two-story, creek-side house is going up across the street from Jackson, added ``It's been a little hot.''

The exterior brick on Hill's home was being done by Tommy Smith Masonry, who also bricked the Viola house. One of Smith's crew, Bill O'Toole, has been laying brick on Homerarama houses for 10 years. He knows the advantage of being among the first to finish.

``It gets a little hectic near the end, so we're lucky to be here in the beginning,'' O'Toole said. ``Later, everyone's trying to get everything done at the last minute.''

Thus far, only two featured homes in Homearama have been sold and another is under contract. Prospective buyers and curious neighbors often visit the half-finished homes in the evening when workmen have gone.

One such visitor swatted at May flies as she and her husband carefully stepped over two-by-fours to walk through skeletal rooms.

``I'm really looking forward to seeing the houses finished,'' she said. ``I'm amazed how fast they went up. I love the area. It would be a great place to live.''

Even if it does require a little imagination. ILLUSTRATION: [Cover, Color photo]

Photo by SANDRA BARKER

Walter Moore and Johnny Foxwell shoot nails into the Cohen-Widener

Photos by SANDRA BARKER

Plaster and wallboard are delivered to the Joey Construction house.

Homearama will showcase 11 custom-built homes costing up to

$275,000.

Wood-framed geometric shapes strain the imagination in a future

foyer.

Carpenter John Ferguson figures out all the angles for the 21st

Century Virginian-Pilot house.

Builder Albie Viola speaks with brick-layer Bill O'Toole as the crew